My First Treasure
by Madyamisam
Summary: It has been three years since he left, three years since a confession was made and Seto now twentyfour returns to Japan. However, he is about to discover how much things have changed in the three years he has been away. SxJ Shonen ai
1. Chapter 1

Title: My First Treasure

Chapter: 1/?

Author: Madyamisam

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: Jou/OC, Seto/Jou

Beta: Jennie B (my saviour and goddess)

Spoiler: Mentions of the Death-T tournament.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from Yu-Gi-Oh or the songs of Fruits Basket Four Seasons. Credit for these go to manga artist Kazuki Takahashi and composer/singer Ritsuko Okazaki

Summary: This fic was inspired by the songs of Fruits Basket written and composed by the wonderful Ritsuko Okazaki. It has been three years since he left, three years since a confession was made and Seto, now twenty-four, returns to Japan. However, he is about to discover how much things have changed in the three years he has been away.

---

It was with a strange satisfaction that he breathed the fresh air of his homeland as he strode purposefully towards his awaiting limousine, the metal briefcase he had carried for over six years swaying slightly in time with his long strides. The chauffeur bowed low in his presence before opening the door for him, and soon the loud noises of the aeroplanes became distant. After an hour or so spent working on proposals on his laptop, Seto Kaiba glanced out of his tinted window as the car passed a line of cherry blossom trees in full bloom. He allowed a smile creep across his face as he watched a few of the delicate pink petals floating away from tree branches. He remembered that the trees had flowered at the time he had left as well. Considering how short and erratic the blooming period was for cherry blossoms trees, he was pleased to have been able to see them at their most beautiful on both occasions. 'But you didn't come back here just to enjoy the scenery, did you?'

Seto stared at the old locket that Mokuba had made for him back when he had been in that coma for a few weeks in after his dealings with Yugi and his mysterious other self. His younger brother was now attending an established university in America, and was studying computer engineering. His company branch in the States was flourishing, and had become a major corporate player in the entertainment business, far exceeding the expected quotas for their products. Any competition had instantly been quashed by Kaiba Corp's success, and project developments were running three months ahead of schedule. All in all, it meant that Kaiba now had a lot of free time on his hands, and he was about to make good use of that time to pursue a goal that he had come to realise was more important than any business venture or title he had ever sought.

He thought back to when he had left Japan. At the time, he had established a tenuous friendship with Yugi that had slowly branched out towards his friends and surprisingly, out of all of them, he had built a good rapport with Jounouchi- the one that he had thought he would be the least likely to connect with. He had always thought that Jounouchi was nothing more than a clumsy, brainless oaf that he would have never given a second glance at, except perhaps to insult him. However, he had come to realise that Jounouchi was a lot more intelligent than he was given credit for, and incredibly resourceful despite his financial limitations. Although it never seemed to show in the blond's grades in school, Seto came to realise that Jounouchi could easily have been an A-grade student if he had wanted to be. Kaiba cursed himself for wasting his time being cautious around them, and by the time he felt that he could try to commit to getting to know the tight-knit group of friends a little better, he had had to leave. He regretted every minute he had wasted keeping his distance. But at the crux of it all was the last thing he heard Jounouchi say to him that day at the airport;

---

"I like you," Jounouchi said, a slight flush of pink on his perfect, sun-kissed face. Kaiba blinked, his surprise evident despite the impassive expression on his face. "Not love, ok? I don't you know well enough to call it that."

"Why are you telling me this all of a sudden?" Kaiba scowled.

"Well, this is technically the last time we'll ever see each other- at least for a while," Jounouchi replied, staring at the floor. "Knowing you, you'll be too busy to even think about your home in Japan, let alone me, so not much point in giving you my contact number. But, I thought I'd say this now and get it off my chest, and then I won't regret it." Kaiba was left speechless by both the confession and the way it had been delivered. It had to have taken a lot of courage for Jounouchi to admit something like that, so he remained silent and waited for Jounouchi to finish. "I don't expect you to stay because of what I say; besides, it would be selfish of me to think otherwise. In fact, I know you won't stay. But… given the opportunity, I would have tried harder to get you to open up, to try to get to know you better and understand what goes on in that crazy head of yours. Anyway, here…." Jounouchi pressed something into Seto's hand.

"Y-your Red Eyes Black Dragon?" Kaiba gasped. It was Jounouchi's favourite card in Duel Monsters, and he was just giving it to him?

"I know I'm crazy… I know in all likelihood you'll probably just toss it among all the other cards in that ridiculous briefcase of yours, or maybe even rip it up, but… I want you to have it, ok?" Jounouchi took a deep breath and allowed a smile to settle on his face. "Well, you need to get on board or you'll miss your flight. See ya Kaiba," Before Seto could say another word, Jounouchi was gone.

---

Since that day, Seto's thoughts had always gone back to Jounouchi. At first, he berated himself for it, claiming that thinking of those things would just hinder his progress. Over the three years though, he found that thinking of the blond had inspired many of his more successful projects. He found that when he was stuck on something, he would only have to glance at the Red Eyes Black Dragon card on his desk and everything would suddenly become clear. Although he never used it in a duel or as part of a system test, he always kept the card close. Eventually, he even decided to modify his card shaped pendant to keep it in. Years had gone by with one success after another until, eventually, Mokuba started nagging him about taking a break.

---

"Nii-sama, please, you haven't taken a break outside of a lunch hour since you got here. Kaiba Corp America is flourishing, and all projects you've set out are on schedule and near completion," the 19-year-old Mokuba badgered.

"The market can change at any moment, otouto. I can't risk a holiday. Besides, I want to look at the blue prints on this new project," Seto replied, still working steadily on his computer. Mokuba glared at his older brother and, grabbing his chair, he twisted him hard around from his work place. Kaiba blinked in surprise at his brother's sudden harshness.

"Yes, the market is erratic, Seto, but the company is strong enough now to handle it. The real concern is the pace you're working at. Our staff have been working full steam for nearly three years to keep up with you, and they're all starting to have a breakdown. Nii-sama, please, just take some time off for them to catch up, and they'll make your products more efficient. Give them some leeway," the younger Kaiba, now as tall as Seto himself, forced his brother to look at him when the brunet's eyes strayed to his desktop as he spoke. "You've done enough for this company; stop putting so much wood on the fire or you'll end up smothering it. Seto, this is the perfect opportunity for you to think of yourself for a change. Those blueprints will still be there when you get back." Seto bit his lower lip taking one last glimpse at his latest idea, and then at the pendant. The voice of his secretary suddenly came through the intercom.

"Mr Kaiba, Mr Takaya has asked if he could postpone his meeting with you for tomorrow? He says he wants more time to go through his presentation to check for any mistakes and refine it."

"That was about the performance of that new microchip, wasn't it?"

"Yes sir; the one you proposed two weeks ago." Seto's eyes widened.

"That soon?" he muttered, taking note from the corner of his eye of the smug look on Mokuba's face.

"Sir, what should I tell him?" the secretary asked.

"Um… grant his request, and tell him to take his time. In fact… cancel all my appointments for the next three we-" He faltered when Mokuba glared at him. "Months… cancel the appointments for the next three months. I'll be away for a while."

"Yes sir."

"Also, inform all employees that Mr Kaiba appreciates their hard work and dedication, and that 50 of the profits that we make for this company this year will be invested into their bonuses," Mokuba added with a sadistic grin on his face, ignoring the horrified look on his brother's face.

"Y-yes sir, thank you very much," squeaked the woman on the intercom. Mokuba turned to his older sibling and dumped a bunch of fliers onto his desk.

"You had this planned all along, didn't you?" Seto frowned disapprovingly at the mass of travel brochures.

"Oh, I did it for your own good," Mokuba retorted, waving his hand dismissively. "Now, where would you like to go? Rome? Egypt? Or maybe you could go on a cruise? I've heard that Venice is a nice place to be this time of the year." Seto gave a wry smile as he tuned out his brother's babbling and turning his attention towards his pendant. He opened it and stared at the Red Eyes Black Dragon embossed on the left side of the pendant whilst a photo of a young version of Mokuba stared at him from the right.

"Maybe… maybe I should go back home, for a while," he mused. 'Home…' He repeated the word in his head a few more times and noticed, for the first time, a sense of longing for such a place. As if reading his mind, Mokuba flashed him another cheeky smile.

"Good choice," he said as he backed towards the door. "I'll allow you finish up here while I help you pack your bags,"

"You're really keen on getting rid of me, aren't you?" Seto chuckled. Mokuba merely winked back at his older sibling before jogging out of the office.

"Naturally; I am, after all, a caring, concerned, and normal little brother," Mokuba retorted. Seto rolled his eyes at what the younger man had implied, but as soon as his sibling was gone, the young CEO slouched into his leather chair, feeling the brunt of an assortment of aches and pains in his body from working too much.

"Home…" Seto whispered to himself, listening to sound of the word roll off his tongue whilst his attention was focused on the pendant. "Jounouchi…"

---

"Go to the Kame Game shop," Kaiba ordered, unconsciously gripping the pendant tightly in his hand. The chauffer merely gave a nod of acknowledgement. 'He'll know for sure where I can find him.' Seto sighed as he waited impatiently to have a talk with his former rival.

---

"Welcome, and how may I he- Kaiba-kun?" Yugi blinked, staring at the brunet with awe. Kaiba raised an eyebrow. It seemed that Yugi hadn't changed much, except for the fact that he had probably grown a few inches taller. "Oh, forgive me for acting like a goldfish. I never expected you to be back; if I had known I would ha-"

"It's all right; my decision to return to Japan was a rather sudden one," Kaiba admitted. He looked away awkwardly, pretending to have an interest at the line of action figures on the shelf. Yugi smiled, allowing the CEO to gather his thoughts before he questioned him further.

"Yugi I just checked the stock in the ba- oh!" The former pharaoh was astonished to see his ex-rival standing there. Kaiba glanced over once before returning his attention to the Barbie dolls. Last Seto had heard of Yami was that he had got his own body shortly before his departure three years ago, and had decided to live a relatively normal life alongside his former soul partner. All of a sudden, Yugi had a twin brother.

"Kaiba, it's been a while," Yami said. "What brings you back to Japan?"

"I'm… I'm taking some time off from work," Seto said, suddenly feeling very self-conscious. Even more so when he noticed the stunned expressions on the twins' faces "So I came back to… relax." Yugi's shock turned into an expression of understanding.

"Thank you, Kaiba-kun, for taking the time to visit us." He beamed happily. "Oh, where are my manners? Would you like a drink, Kaiba-kun? We have tea, fruit juice…"

"Tea would be fine." Yugi beamed again as he literally skipped off to the kitchen, only to be distracted with a phone call.

"I GOT IT!" he shouted. His hospitality was totally thrown out of the window as he quickly became engrossed in a conversation with his girlfriend. Anzu had moved to New York to study ballet after the gang's high school graduation, but had kept in constant contact with Yugi, and in doing so, the two had developed a loving, long distance relationship, and visiting each other whenever they had the chance. Yami sighed as he went to the door and turned the placard from 'Open' to 'Closed', and stuck a piece of paper in the window explaining the reason for closing early.

"He'll be on that phone for hours. Come on into the kitchen, I'll get the tea," he said good-naturedly. Yami was put in charge of the game shop, which had taken a big weight of off Sugoroku's shoulders (who subsequently had gone travelling again), and the little shop had doubled in size since Kaiba had seen it last. "I'm pleased to see you again. How long has it been? Three years?" Yami continued.

"Yeah."

"How long are you staying in Japan for?"

"A couple of months."

"Oh. Do you have any plans? If you don't, I could always call some of the old gang again for us to hang out with."

"Actually, I was wondering…" Seto faltered, wondering at first why he even bothered. Absently, his hand went straight for his pendant. "I was wondering where I could find Jounouchi," he said. Yami blinked and suddenly looked awkward.

"Um… An-chan, can I call you back?" Yugi whispered. "What's your reason for wanting to see Jounouchi-kun?"

"Just wanted to know how the idiot was doing," Seto replied, his old habit of adding an insult to the end of his sentences suddenly coming back with a vengeance.

"Well, he'll be coming over later today, but please Kaiba-kun, try to refrain from talking to him like you used to," Yugi urged. "He's fallen on hard times recently."

"Why am I not surprised? What has he gotten himself into this time?"

"Kaiba!" Yami snapped, his eyes suddenly cold. Feeling a strange tension, Seto decided to keep his mouth shut this time. Now, he was getting worried; it seemed it was something that none of Jounouchi's friends could help him with. 'What could have possibly happened while I was away?'

"Sorry," he muttered taking a sip of his tea in order to reduce the tension he felt between himself and the twins. Satisfied, the coldness in Yami's eyes turned into a glazed and dreamy expression.

"I think I'll go upstairs and check on her again." He hurried towards the stairs with a slight bounce in his step.

"Yami, that's the seventh time already. It's not like she's going anywhere." Yugi scowled.

"Who are you talking about?" The brunet blinked at the strange exchange between the two. Yugi chuckled at his brother's antics.

"Why don't you go see for yourself?" he replied. The blue-eyed brunet looked unsure, but followed the former pharaoh up the stairs. Yami turned and placed a finger on his lips signalling for the CEO to be quiet as they entered, the normally staid look he wore had been replaced with a delighted sparkle in his eyes. His face suddenly paled though when they entered an empty room with nothing more than a rumpled bed sheet where someone had been sleeping. He gasped as he began search frantically around the room and under the bed.

"Ra, where is she? RIKU!" Yami shouted. Alerted by his former soul partner's distress, Yugi raced up the stairs and barged in.

"Yami, what's wrong?"

"She's gone!" Yami cried as he tossed the bed sheet aside.

"When was the last time you checked on her?"

"About half an hour ago; she was asleep and I thought the room was a bit stuffy so I opened the window a li- AAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHH!" Yami shrieked, pointing outside in absolute horror. Seto gasped at the window that was wide open. Outside was a scaffolding frame that Yami had called for in order to fix the roof, and the workers had all taken a tea break. The three rushed over and peeked outside, and their fears were confirmed when they heard a soft giggle above them.

"THE SCAFFOLD!" Yugi cried as they all clambered out onto the semi-stable platform. The brunet stared in awe at the little figure sitting on a plank of wood that had been left out by the workers, half of it sticking out on the scaffold ledge. Baby Riku sat on the plank near the edge. The child, who looked barely nine months old, was adorable to say the least. She had huge, puppy brown eyes that put Yugi's already abnormally large ones to shame, and on her head she wore a white woollen cap. The baby blinked in wonder before showing off a toothless grin that could have melted the coldest of hearts. The twins both breathed a sigh of relief as they treaded carefully across the platform toward her.

"Hi-ya little cutie," Yugi burbled, trying to coax the child away from the edge.

"Come here, Riku. That's a good girl. Come to Uncle Yami," Yami said, the grin on his face laced with panic. Rather than obeying her babysitter, Riku crawled away along the plank, still giggling. "No, no, no, no, come back here RIKU! STOP!" Yugi rushed to grab her before she fell, only to be knocked out as the plank levered by the baby's weight smacked him in the chin. Yami let out a silent scream as the Riku disappeared off the wooden ramp and then fainted. The brunet rushed to the edge and let out a sigh of relief as the child landed safely on the next level of scaffolding that subsequently led to another part of the house. He hurried back down and went through the rooms until he came upon the window where Riku was. Riku looked bemused as she tapped the glass with her small hand. When she saw Seto, she let another smile cross her lips whilst Seto opened the window and gathered her up into his arms.

"You're a bit of a daredevil aren't you?" Seto muttered, a wily smirk gracing his lips as the baby hung loosely in his arms. Riku answered with a giggle whilst the brunet brought her back to the makeshift nursery from where she had made her disappearing act, and where Yugi and Yami still lay.

"Huuu…?" Riku said pointing at the unconscious out twins, her expression a picture of curious interest. The two exchanged glances with each other. Kaiba grinned wickedly at his former rival.

"Yes, that's your fault," he replied to her unasked question, but his amused expression turned to one of resignation. "And it pains me to think that I failed to destroy even one of these guys with all my expensive, state of the art equipment while you managed to knock them both out with a wooden plank."

"Heeeeh…." the baby answered with what seemed to carry a tone of smugness. Seto grumbled and muttered curses to himself.

"Let's get you cleaned up first, you rug-rat. We can leave them out there for a little while." Much to his surprise Kaiba had almost instantly become attached to the child, even to her quirky, and sometimes clumsy, antics that seemed so vaguely familiar. While both Yami and Yugi were asleep from the ordeal of the scaffolding, Seto spent the afternoon playing and coddling Riku and it seemed that she, too, had taken an immediate liking to her new friend.

Seto was surprised that he had spent a whole afternoon with the baby, and that the thought of finding Jounouchi had been all but forgotten. It was when a familiar voice called into the house that he was suddenly reminded of his original goal in coming to the Motou household.

"Yugi, sorry I'm late." Seto's heart skipped a beat as he heard for the first time in three years the sound of Jounouchi's voice. The blond still retained the rich and soft tenor he had possessed three years ago, yet at the same time, it had matured. Kaiba strode to the hallway, and the sight before him took his breath away. Jounouchi was dressed in a thin, brown overcoat with a white woollen scarf around his neck and loose blue jeans. The messy gold mane he had once had had settled down and seemed to frame his face, making him look more refined. Jou had been an attractive boy when he was in his teens, despite the rugged way he had presented himself through the years of high school and university, but for some reason, he had undergone a magnificent transformation in the last three years. Kaiba recognised the soft, soulful chocolate brown eyes, but somehow, he noticed that there was something a little off about them, as if something in Jou had been missing or lost. Although Kaiba was standing in front of him, Jou was too engrossed with balancing his grocery bags and taking off his shoes in the hallway. The instant Riku heard the blond's voice, she speed crawled towards him and into the kitchen with the CEO trailing behind her. Kaiba stood in the doorway as the infant tugged on the blond's jeans. Jou looked down and his face instantly lit up as he scooped the giggling tot into his arms. Seto stared in awe at the picture, and his heart warmed at sight of the blond's beautiful smile.

"Hey you," Jou cooed, rubbing noses with the baby. "Did you miss your daddy?"

Seto's heart stopped. 'Daddy?'

TBC…


	2. Chapter 2

Title: My First Treasure

Chapter: 2/4

Author: Madyamisam

Rating: PG-13

Pairing: Jou/OC, Seto/Jou

Beta: Jennie B (the ultimate beta)

Spoiler: Mentions of the Death-T tournament.

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters from Yu-Gi-Oh or the songs of Fruits Basket Four Seasons. Credit for these go to manga artist Kazuki Takashi and composer/singer Ritsuko Okazaki

Summary: This fic was inspired by the songs of Fruits Basket written and composed by the wonderful Ritsuko Okazaki. It has been three years since he left, three years since a confession was made and Seto now twenty-four returns to Japan. However, he is about to discover how much things have changed in the three years he has been away.

---

Seto's heart stopped. 'Daddy?' He thought as he shrunk away from the doorway and leaned against the wall. 'If Jou has a daughter then does that mean he's…?' Kaiba never finished the thought in his head, as it seemed to only cause a painful constriction in his chest and a nauseating feeling in his stomach. Finding the strange emotions that came over him overbearing he leaned against the wall, looking fatigued.

"Kaiba?" The sound of Jounouchi's voice brought the CEO out of his thoughts and he was assaulted with a fresh new wave of mixed emotions at a closer look at the blond. Seto could now clearly see the family resemblance between father and daughter, the warm rich brown eyes and blond hair. The only difference is that Riku's hair seemed a little darker and duller than Jou's golden mane and the fact that Riku had a sparkle in her brown eyes that had disappeared from her father's. Jounouchi had taken off his brown coat and scarf to show a close-fitted cream coloured turtle neck that accentuated the shape of his well-toned body as if further taunting the brunet. 'Is… is Jounouchi…?' His unfinished question was answered when he eye caught sight of the ring. It was a simple band of gold that was fitted snugly around the blond's third finger and suddenly, the constriction returned tenfold. "Hey, are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Kaiba replied trying to get his bearings. He could still see the concern in the blond's eyes and his mind worked quickly to steer the blond away from him. "So, it looks like you've been busy," he said indicating the bundle in Jou's arms.

"No busier than you I guess," the blond replied as he started putting on Riku's coat to get ready to leave. The infant squirmed and whimpered in protest as Jounouchi buckled her into her travel chair. "Speaking of which, how's business and Mokuba?" Before the brunet could reply, Yami and Yugi who had just woken up rushed down the stairs.

"Whatever happens we have to find her before Jo-" Yami let out another silent scream and fainted. Confusion was written all over Jounouchi's face as Yugi tried to revive his former soul partner. After a few moments of panicking and reassuring, Yami came to. As soon as he was awake, the former pharaoh went into a long line of ramblings of windows, scaffoldings and pleas for forgiveness of negligence.

"Coo…" Riku suddenly interjected as he babbled, flailing her tiny legs in the air in defiance to the restrictive belts that held her down. Yami gasped and grabbed the baby, chair and all, into a suffocating hug.

"Oh thank Ra, Isis, Min and whatever deities there are out there that you're alive!" Yami crowed as he rocked Riku in his arms, with joy.

"I guess I should have warned you about her. She's quite adventurous and will take any opportunity to explore," Jounouchi explained. Allowing a small smile to grace his lips as he took the chair from Yami. "Thanks again for looking after her for the day though. I think we've bothered you two enough."

"Bother us, are you kidding me?" Yugi cried as he tickled the baby's chin. "We had so much fun looking after her today. She has been really good, she hasn't cried at all and she even attracted some customers because they saw her through the shop window and thought she was so cute." Yugi's eyes shined as he described the day as if it was a wonderful dream. Yami who had now calmed down from his ordeal added.

"Point is Jounouchi-kun, we were honoured to be able to baby-sit her today and hoped to look after her again," he smiled at the child with a sense of pride of being a part of her life. Riku gave another toothless grin to the twins and kicked her legs again as they were the only things not restrained to her travel seat. Yami's pride turned to dread. "That is, if you trust us to look after her again after that incident."

"Why don't you join us for dinner as our way of making it up to you?" Yugi added showing all the whites of his teeth as he smiled. Yami caught on to his brother's train of thought and matched his twin's smile with a Cheshire cat grin of his own.

"It's getting late, I really should-" Jou was interrupted by a whimper from his daughter who was starting to feel incredibly frustrated with sitting in her chair for so long.

"See, see? Riku doesn't want to leave yet!" Yami beamed, rushing to release the infant and strip her of her coat before settling down to play with her.

"But-"

"Come on Jounouchi-kun, just like old times," Yugi said as he dragged Jounouchi away from the door.

"I cooked for you in the old times," Jounouchi retorted looking flummoxed and slightly irritated.

"Don't worry we'll handle it this time. Kaiba-kun's joining us and he came all the way from America too, you know. Besides, you being so busy lately with your job and taking care of Riku, you probably haven't eaten a thing all day," Jounouchi worried his lip as he was made to sit down on the sofa, whilst Yugi went to drag the silent brunet to sit in a chair next to him.

"Are you sure Yugi?"

"Of course, now sit, and chat to each other." Yugi's eyes twinkled as he gave a mischievous wink to the brunet. "I'm gonna go fix dinner now." The smaller of the twins bounced towards to the kitchen only to stride back into the lounge and dragging his brother by the ear. "You're coming with me,"

"Oh but Riku wants to play with me!" Yami whined as he was yanked away from the child who, incidentally, was quite content with playing by herself. There was a awkward silence between the men apart from the sounds of Riku banging on a baby-sized keyboard before turning her interests upon a cupboard where the handles were just high enough for her to reach if she stood up.

"So…" Jounouchi finally began. "Before we got interrupted I asked-"

"Business has gone well, which is why I was able to find time to come back." Jounouchi raised an incredulous eyebrow. Seto chuckled. "Alright, my brother forced me to go on a vacation. Apparently, my employees were struggling to keep up with my working pace. How about you?"

"I'm managing, though I wonder if Riku's getting enough attention what with me being so busy." As if she understood their conversation Riku stopped trying to chew Yugi's old duel disk that she found in the cupboard to stare at her father, her big brown eyes gazed up at him as if he was an interesting piece of artwork. "Were your duel disks saliva proof by the way?" Seto chuckled as the baby went back to sticking the hunk of plastic into her mouth only to have it confiscated by her father.

"I think so though I never tested them in that respect." The brunet smiled in amusement whilst the baby gazed longingly at the strange blue and white toy that Jou took away from her. A line of drool dripped from her lips down her round chubby chin. The blond man plucked the scamp into his arms wiping away the mucous-like liquid from her mouth. "She's really cute, a spitting image of you." Jounouchi smiled.

"She has her mother's eyes though," he commented and Seto suddenly found the differences between father and daughter more noticeable. Jounouchi's eyes were more a golden brown whilst Riku's was deep, dark chocolate colour.

"Her mother as in-"

"My wife, Kyoko," Jounouchi replied. Seto's heart sank. "What else did you think it was?" He had constantly thought of Jounouchi over the three years in America since the blond's confession before he boarded the plane. He left feeling confused but in time his feelings became clear and he began to regret that he might have missed opportunity in pursuing a relationship. The evidence became clear from the blond himself. Jounouchi had moved on.

"I guess it's just that I thought you're a bit young to be a father. Sorry, it was wrong of me to jump into conclusions like that," he said hurriedly in order to hide the ache in his heart.

"No, I get that a lot especially with my own family background. Riku was planned. No doubt about that," Jounouchi said. "I even set her a bank account ready for her when she goes to college, if that's her choice of course." As he talked about his daughter, a smile crept onto his face and the dullness that Seto saw his eyes started to regain a little of the light that Jou used to have three years ago. It appeared like a weak candle in a dark room and seemed to warm the CEO inside at the same time it comforted him to deal with the fact that he could never experience such feelings from the blond.

"She's a beautiful lady then? Your wife I mean," Kaiba really wanted to know about the woman that captured Jou's heart but at the mention of Kyoko, the light in Jou's eyes faded again becoming dull and lifeless. Alarmed by this Kaiba kept questions about the woman to himself.

"Yeah," Jou answered fiddling with the band of gold on his ring finger. It seemed the subject about Jou's wife was sensitive one. "What brings you back to Japan?" Jounouchi asked in order to change the subject. Seto wasn't sure if he should answer. 'What should I say? That I've been thinking of you constantly since you confessed and over the course of these three years I think I might have fallen in love with you and now it's clear I've come back to tell you?' Even a total idiot with no common sense knew that explanation was stupid and it surprised Seto that it was this very reason that he did come back for. Finding out that the person he had developed a crush for had moved on even getting married, made things all the more awkward and complicated.

"Just…" his mind reeled with trying to come up with a good explanation for his return "…to make up for time being wasted and hoping to find new opportunities to amend those errors."

"You could have simply said that you missed us. There's no shame in that," the blond chuckled whilst the CEO looked a little embarrassed.

Eventually, the awkwardness between the two men dissipated as they both talked about everyday things whilst playing with Riku at the same time. Kaiba had found it strangely pleasant being able to just engage in conversation about mundane subjects and he never thought himself to do it so easily.

They were in the middle of a film when a shriek from the kitchen drew their attention. Riku looked as if she could leap up to the ceiling as the cry surprised her. The two men glanced at each other before they both got up to investigate only to find that the kitchen was a mass of boiling saucepans, white flour scattered across the floor two spiky headed brothers covered head to toe in white. Yami was in Yugi's arms bridal style holding very tightly to the smaller midget.

"What happened in here?" Jounouchi exclaimed in alarm whilst the CEO tried his best not to burst into tears with laughter.

"We were going to make apple pie." Yugi stated miserably before glaring at his soul twin. "Until he got scared by a spider when I asked him to get the flour."

"I wasn't scared, just surprised." Yami pouted indignantly. "Those eight legged things are evil jumping out at people like that."

"Gee, I'd hate to imagine what the spider was feeling," Kaiba commented, flashing a wicked grin at the twins. Yami glared at his former rival in spite of knowing that being completely covered in flour made him look even more ridiculous. Wordlessly, the blond headed toward the closet for the vacuum cleaner to help clean up the mess. Yugi sighed as the blond got to work on the kitchen.

"I guess we're ordering pizza tonight huh?" Yugi said as he stood still allowing the blond to clean off most of the flour from his and Yami's clothes. Although they still looked like two ghosts. Jounouchi glanced at the room and the various saucepans filled to the brim with sauces and ingredients.

"It would be a waste to throw all this stuff away," he said as he rolled up his sleeves and continued on where the twins had left off. "Why don't you two go get yourselves cleaned up?"

"Oh, oh, oh I want shogayaki then (1) and could you make some of your yummy daifuku (2) cakes with the red bean paste in them?" Yami cheered childishly. He tensed up when he heard a quiet growl from his brother and realised that Yugi was still carrying him when he leapt into the other's arms. Suddenly, Yami wished he were still dead.

---

Things had settled down after the flour incident and Jounouchi had managed to divert the potential disaster in the kitchen into a delicious supper. The four adults sat together and chatted about their lives and Seto had come to learn that Jounouchi had obtained a PhD as a physician. He also learned that the blond had named both Yugi and Yami as Riku's godfathers. Every now and then Riku would butt in with a nonsensical word of her own and both her godfathers would literally squeal and babble talk with her. As Yugi was busy telling the group a story one of his trips visiting Anzu, Seto couldn't help but watch with fascination at the blond plucking a stewed pear and delicately cutting the soft mushy flesh up with his chopsticks and feeding the pear to Riku who ate it with relish. Yet he looked a little concerned when Jounouchi's own food remained untouched. Eventually as the evening progressed, the child started rubbing her eyes as a sign that she was sleepy and Jounouchi left the table barely even eating a bite of his meal.

"He hasn't even touched it yet," Yugi commented as he put his plate down and gave thanks for the meal before taking it to the kitchen to start cleaning.

"What is going on?" Seto asked starting to feel annoyed with his lack of knowledge.

"I'd thought you'd have figured it out by now," Yami mumbled whilst chewing on a daifuku. "But you're going to have to find out for yourself. He doesn't like it when we talk about his life behind his back and believe me he usually finds out about it if we do," Annoyed with the former spirit for being so enigmatic, Seto got up to follow Jounouchi into a small sitting room next to the lounge. He opened the door just wide enough to see what was going on. Jounouchi sat into a reclining chair holding the baby girl in his arms whilst Riku's head rested on her father's arm as he rocked her to sleep and singing her a lullaby. His soft tenor of his voice sounded pleasant and calming yet at the same time sad as the sounds melted together creating a little world that belonged to the father and daughter. Seto strained his ears to hear the words of the lullaby.

"_You are my first treasure_

_I love you that much_

_Although my strong, yet weak heart _

_Gets lonesome occasionally_

_Your smile alone makes me happy_

_And it makes everything OK_

_I was looking down every day, down into the mud_

_But, I am looking up at the sky now_

_I wish I could say something _

_To your troubled and anguished back_

_Right away, I want to embrace your shoulders_

_That are soaked with pouring rain_

_It's alright that you don't seek me always and anytime_

_I know you any day_

_The key that will open your heart is not a strong power_

_It is made of straight-forward feelings._

_I shall do my best again today. Let's gain the strength not to be defeated. _

_For the sake of the person whom I love._ (3)"

Satisfied that Riku was asleep, Jounouchi carefully placed her into her travel chair ready for the journey home and relaxed back onto the reclining chair with a heavy sigh. Although it was too dark to see the blond's face, Kaiba could tell that there was something troubling the younger man.

"Jounouchi?" The blond sat up in alarm to the sudden intrusion into the sitting room and tried to hide his face. Seto could just make out that he was rubbing at his eyes. 'Is he crying' he thought as he cautiously edged closer into the room. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," The blond stood up as he picked up the travel chair. "It's really late now though, I need to go home. It's been nice to see ya again Kaiba." Jounouchi stared at the floor refusing to meet the brunet in the eye as he pushed past. Seto stood by the doorway as Jounouchi bid farewell to his friends and thanking them again for babysitting Riku.

---

A week passed by since Seto last saw Jounouchi. Many a time he considered if he should just look up the damn blond's address or workplace and visit him yet he became self-conscious of the fact that he might inadvertently cause trouble between Jounouchi and Kyoko. Worst of all, Mokuba gave him an ultimatum about work during his 'holiday'.

"Spend one minute on work and that's one more day before you're allowed to come back to America," Kaiba was bored out of his mind. When the phone rang he almost leapt out of his seat in his study.

"Kaiba," he announced in his usual business tone wincing inwardly if it was indeed work.

"Yo, I heard you were back in Domino," a familiar voice came up on the line.

"Honda?"

"Bingo, glad you still remember me. Thought you might be interested in lending a helping hand tomorrow since I've been told you've been given the red card by Mokuba at work."

"I'm just taking a vacation." Kaiba snorted. "What do you need help on anyway?"

"Well, me and Otogi went to the hospital Jounouchi works at and informed his boss that Jou's come down with the flu and shouldn't come in, in case he passes it onto his patients." Honda explained. "Long story- short."

"Too late,"

"Jou's got a whole week off but he doesn't know it yet, so we're going to go to his place first thing tomorrow morning before he gets up and let him sleep in. How's that sound?" Kaiba frowned at the frivolous nature of the plan but on the other hand it allowed for Seto to meet Kyoko for the first time without making her suspicious.

"What time and where?"

TBC…

(1) Shogayaki- Pork with ginger sauce

(2) Daifuku- Japanese dessert made from rice flour. It has a very doughy/chewy texture taste to it and can contain all sorts of sweet fillings such as red bean paste. It's kind of a Japanese equivalent to a jammy doughnut

(3) This song is called Serenade by Ritsuko Okazaki. It sounds odd in English but I kept it in its literal translation as it's the lyrics are what were significant and deliberately changing it may alter it altogether. For those of you who are interested. Here is the original Japanese version.

Serenade 

_Hajimete no takara mono yo,_

_konna nimo suki ni natte_

_Tsuyoku te yowai kokoro, _

_Toki ni wa sabishi garu kedo_

_Kimiga warau to sore dakede mou ureshikute_

_Subete ga nuku warerun da_

_Utsu muite ta hi wa koko kara mite ta no wa nukarumi_

_Demo ima wa sora wo mi age teru_

_Tohou ni kureru senaka ni_

_Kotoba wo kake tai kedo_

_Dosha buri ni nureta kata wo_

_Sugu nimo daki tai keredo_

_Itsu mo itsu demo motomete ite kure nakute ii_

Don na hi mo kimi wo shitteru 

_Kokoro no kagi wo akeru no wa tsuyoi chikara jya naku_

_Massugu ni omou kimochi_

_Kyou mo ganbarou makenai tsuyosa wo motou _

_aisuru hito no tame nimo"_


End file.
